During the MWC conference Microsoft finally unveiled the news and press behind the all new Hololens 2. The successor of the original Microsoft Hololens, the second generation will be providing a more immersive and spatial experience.

The second generation headset features a laser-scanning display called MEMS which enhances the original FOV by more than two times on the first Hololens. They state that it is the most powerful efficient 2K display in existence. Another cool feature is being able to log into your Hololens through Iris recognition.

The front enclosure is made entirely out of carbon fiber for light-weight, durability, and aesthetically pleasing reasons.

But the 3 components that Microsoft is really concentrating on is around immersion, comfort, and time-to-value. Microsoft stated that they’ve improved the Hololens 2’s comfort by more than 3x.

Display

Optics

See-through holographic lenses (waveguides)

Resolution

2k 3:2 light engines

Holographic density

>2.5k radiants (light points per radian)

Eye-based rendering

Display optimization for 3D eye position

Sensors

Head tracking

Eye tracking

Depth

Azure Kinect sensor

IMU

Accelerometer, gyroscope, magnetometer

Camera

8MP stills, 1080p30 video

Audio & speech

Microphone array

5 channels

Speakers

Built-in, spatial audio

Human understanding

Hand tracking

Two-handed fully articulated model, direct manipulation

Eye tracking

Real-time tracking

Voice

Command and control on-device, Natural Language with internet connectivity

Environment understanding

6DoF tracking

World-scale positional tracking

Spatial mapping

Real-time environment mesh

Mixed reality capture

Mixed hologram and physical environment photos and videos

Compute & connectivity

SoC

Qualcomm Snapdragon 850 Compute Platform

HPU

2nd generation custom-built holographic processing unit

WiFi

802.11ac 2×2

Bluetooth

5.0

USB

USB Type-C

Fit

Single size

Fits over glasses

Software

Windows Holographic Operating System

Edge

Dynamics 365 Remote Assist

Dynamics 365 Layout

Dynamics 365 Guides

3D Viewer

OneDrive for Business

“Today represents an important milestone for Microsoft,” said Julia White, Corporate Vice President, Microsoft Azure. “This moment captures the very best efforts and passion of numerous teams spanning Azure, HoloLens, Dynamics 365 and Microsoft Devices — this truly is a moment where the sum is greater than the parts. From cutting-edge hardware design to mixed reality-infused cloud services, today’s announcements represent the collective work of many teams. And none of this would be possible without our passionate community of customers, partners and developers.”

Hololens 2 Availability

Hololens 2 will be available some time this year in 2019 according to Microsoft. It will start at $3,500 which is relatively similar to the original headset. Bundles including Dynamics 365 Remote Assist start at $125/month. HoloLens 2 will be initially available in the United States, Japan, China, Germany, Canada, United Kingdom, Ireland, France, Australia and New Zealand. You can pre-order here.